Do you burn more calories in hot weather?

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  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    I think you do burn more in hot weather. My husband wears a HRM when he mows the lawn and on the days he is mowing in the afternoon (rather than morning or evening) he burns about TWICE the calories.

    He doesn't burn twice the calories. His HR is higher because of thermal stress. The HRM erroneously interprets the higher HR as a higher workload intensity (which it is not) and spits out a bogus number.
  • dodd319
    dodd319 Posts: 228
    bump
  • k8edge
    k8edge Posts: 380
    What we have to remember here is that heart rate monitors are not the end all, be all of calorie burn.

    I could watch a scary movie, wear an HRM and it would appear I had quite a workout.

    Or be stressed at work, sitting at my chair... HRRMMMM... I wonder why obesity is so high if we're all stressed at work, and burning more.

    Beyond that, after awhile of training in same or similar conditions almost all of us acclimate to heat conditions, so you couldn't count on a higher burn, even if it were true, for too long of a time.

    This is an interesting thing to think about... or to research. How well is that HRM working... I just assumed that it was the most accurate way to measure exercise calories. I guess there really is no exact way to know.

    I do think that I burned more last week running in the heat... My heart rate was much higher than normal and I was definitely working harder to push through the run. It has to count for something... Well. That is just my opinion.
  • bunchesonothing
    bunchesonothing Posts: 1,015 Member

    This is an interesting thing to think about... or to research. How well is that HRM working... I just assumed that it was the most accurate way to measure exercise calories. I guess there really is no exact way to know.

    I do think that I burned more last week running in the heat... My heart rate was much higher than normal and I was definitely working harder to push through the run. It has to count for something... Well. That is just my opinion.

    :)
  • shennard80
    shennard80 Posts: 23 Member
    I didn't think it would be a big difference but using a HRM MFP is usually fairly accruate for calories based on speed/time (at least for me). In this 90-95 degree weather with very high humidity the calories burned per HRM was 240 vs 160 on MFP...only 80 calories but it's a 50% difference.
  • kellimanson
    kellimanson Posts: 1
    When I was in the military we worked out outside each day, in snow/ice and in 90+ heat. I found that I lost more weight in the heat. We took PT (physical training) tests so one of my friends worked out with me 4-5 days a week for a month in the heat, by running and doing drills going uphill and in 4 weeks I lost 15lbs. My little brother also gained weight and more noticeable in the stomach area. He only walked in the late afternoon in the Georgia heat at a slow pace during June-July and then lost his stomach in those 2 months....about 20lbs. I think you burn more in the heat, but you also must properly hydrate yourself to keep from collapsing.
  • ShibaEars
    ShibaEars Posts: 3,928 Member
    I had always wondered if I'd burn more calories on my winter walks. If I'm out when it's -20C, I figure my body's got to be workng harder! (I'm sure it's not a big difference though.)
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    I didn't think it would be a big difference but using a HRM MFP is usually fairly accruate for calories based on speed/time (at least for me). In this 90-95 degree weather with very high humidity the calories burned per HRM was 240 vs 160 on MFP...only 80 calories but it's a 50% difference.

    Under conditions of thermal stress, the relationship between heart rate and oxygen uptake can become greatly distorted, making HRMs calorie counts even more inaccurate.

    During normal steady-state cardio, heart rate and oxygen uptake are linked. If workload is increased, oxygen uptake increases, and so does heart rate. So heart rate can be used as an indicator of increased o2 uptake and calorie burned. Heat causes heart rate to increase but DOES NOT lead to increased o2 uptake. If you are running at 6mph on a cool day with a heart rate of 150, your calorie burn will be similar to running 6.0 on a hot day with a heart rate of 170.
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